Delhi Assembly polls: Arvind Kejriwal announces Rs 18k per month for temple priests, gurdwara granthis if AAP wins

The Pujari Granthi Samman Rashi Scheme is the AAP’s fifth poll promise — it had earlier announced four welfare schemes targeting specific categories of voters, including women, Dalits and senior citizens. It also promised 24×7 water supply.

Kejriwal did not, however, mention if the scheme would cover priests in churches. The Delhi government already has a scheme for imams under which they are provided a monthly aid of Rs 18,000 (2019 figure).

Meanwhile, imams under the Waqf Board held a protest outside Kejriwal’s residence, demanding the release of their salaries.

All India Imam Association chairman Sajid Rashidi said, “It has been 17 months since the government released salaries. We have reminded the government, met the Chief Minister, Lieutenant Governor and other officers to release the payment… If they don’t release our salaries now, we will sit on an indefinite protest.

Addressing a press conference on the new scheme, Kejriwal said: “These are people who have been serving God for generations and they have been taking forward our culture, tradition and rituals for decades. They work at the temple and pray for us. They never think about themselves or their families, they just devote themselves to God. So, I will not call this amount a salary but our respect towards them.”

He said the AAP is the first party in the country to announce such schemes for pandits and granthis. “No party in the country has brought such a scheme yet.”

The registration process for the scheme will be launched Tuesday at the Hanuman Mandir in Connaught Place.

“I will launch this scheme from CP’s auspicious Hanuman temple. I will do the registration of all the pandits in the temple. Later, our MLAs will take this forward in all 70 constituencies,” he said.

He also hit out at the BJP, accusing it of trying to stop registration for their other schemes.

“BJP workers tried to stop registration for other schemes such as Mahila Samman Rashi and Sanjeevani Yojana through the police and other means. I hope they don’t interfere with this because this is a scheme for priests who are considered a bridge between humans and God. It would be a big sin to do so. They (BJP) have already sinned a lot, but don’t try to stop such an auspicious scheme,” he said.

Calling Kejriwal a “desperate leader”, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva, addressing a press conference, said the state unit’s Pujari Prakosht has been demanding salary allowances for priests for a long time.

“We organised several protests and put pressure on Kejriwal’s government to provide wages to priests and granthis… After two years of pressure, Kejriwal was forced to announce the Pujari Granthi Samman Yojana,” he said.

“Kejriwal is now a defeated and desperate leader who is making daily populist announcements to stay in power… He is nothing but a helpless leader attempting to deceive the common people by becoming a dream merchant once again.”

Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav said, “Kejriwal was making desperate attempts to varnish his tainted image and regain his lost ground by announcing various freebies to influence the voters ahead of the polls… His latest gimmick of promising a monthly salary of Rs 18,000 for priests and granthis is another hollow promise.”